The BCREA Nowcast estimate of provincial economic growth (expressed as year-over-year growth in real GDP) for March 2024 is 1.1 per cent. For comparison, year-over-year growth in the Canadian economy in March was 0.6 per cent. Our preliminary estimate for April shows a modest uptick to 1.7 per cent year-over-year. The BCREA Nowcast measure for 2023 was 1.6 per cent, matching actual 2023 real GDP growth measured at the industry level.

At a regional level, our economic region shows strong growth in the Lower Mainland and the Vancouver Island regions. Still, it continues to experience sluggishness in the Kootenay and the North. Our tracking measure for the Thompson Okanagan economy is signalling significant weakness, with a third month of estimated contraction compared to one year ago.

To view the full interactive BCREA Nowcast, click here.
To download the PDF, click here.

Growth of provincial GDP is a key indicator of economic activity, but provincial GDP data is only available annually and with a considerable delay. That's why we developed the BCREA Nowcast – a tool for tracking monthly growth in the BC Economy. The Nowcast compiles monthly economic data into one easy to understand number, expressed as the year-over-year growth in the BC economy.

As the underlying economic data is released with a one- or two-month lag, our estimates for monthly growth will also lag real-time by two months (e.g., estimated growth in January will be published at the end of March). There are no adjustments to the model estimate except for those due to revisions to the underlying data.

For more information, please contact:
Brendon Ogmundson
Chief Economist
Direct: 604.742.2796
Mobile: 604.505.6793
Email: [email protected]

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